My Light Bulb Moment

I was in second grade when I was struck by inspiration, thanks to my gradeschool teacher Mrs. Jackson at Bustleton Elementary School in

Philadelphia. I remember it was a cold Philly morning, sitting around in a circle on the freezing cold classroom tiles. Our teacher was introducing us to the concept of electricity with a simple D-Cell battery, a piece of tin foil and a 1.5vdc, 30ma light bulb. My life was forever changed the moment she touched that little piece of tin foil to the battery… the light bulb went on. It was an awe inspiring moment. How did that work? I needed to learn more. I needed to learn everything about electricity.  What a magical force!

Positive Encouragement

That very same day, I rushed home and told my parents all about it. They were the most encouraging and supportive parents one could ever ask for.  Coincidentally, my father, an engineer loved to tinker in the garage and from that day forward, he started teaching me all about this stuff. 

And so began my love affair with electricity, which led to some really amazing projects, including my first robot, XP-200, followed by a hydro-electric power plant, booby-trapping my room, electronic bird feeders, wind tunnels, eletronic door locks, homemade modems, remote controls, LUB (ask me about this one in person) and hundreds of exciting micro-electronic projects.